2027: ‘One million Tinubu cannot stop Atiku, we will win’ — Shaibu

Michael Olumide Alabi

The camp of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has rejected suggestions that the former vice president should step aside if opposition parties eventually agree on another presidential candidate to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election.

Phrank Shaibu, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to Atiku Abubakar, stated this on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.

His comments came against the backdrop of the G100 initiative, which is seeking greater cooperation among opposition parties and political actors ahead of the 2027 general election.

Shaibu confirmed that Atiku’s camp was actively involved in the opposition discussions but insisted that the G100 initiative should not be viewed primarily as a process for producing a single presidential candidate.

“We are actively involved in the process, and as you and I are talking now, there is only one presidential candidate today. That’s Atiku Abubakar, and he has pushed the administration into the opposition. So, why would a candidate step down for the opposition?” Shaibu queried.

According to him, the immediate objective of the G100 is to establish cooperation among opposition parties, develop common positions and coordinate their communication ahead of the election.

“One of the major principles behind it is that we must come together to put together ideas. That is the fundamental principle of the G100 agenda,” he said.

He added that opposition leaders and spokespersons should work together around common issues and develop coordinated messaging.

“The leaders must work together, the spokespersons must work together, common messaging, same topic, same messaging,” Shaibu said.

Although he acknowledged that a single opposition presidential candidate could eventually emerge, Shaibu maintained that such an outcome was not the primary focus of the G100 initiative.

“So, if possible, one single candidate will emerge. In fact, it is on the last radar of the agenda of the G100,” he said.

Asked specifically whether Atiku would step aside if another opposition politician emerged as the preferred consensus candidate, Shaibu declined to make such a commitment.

“The issue of even the issue of candidature or single candidature is the least on the agenda of the G100,” he said.

His position effectively places Atiku’s presidential ambition at the centre of the ongoing opposition discussions, despite efforts by various political groups to forge a broader alliance against the Tinubu administration.

Shaibu said Atiku’s campaign had moved beyond individual political ambitions and was now focused on what he described as the struggle of ordinary Nigerians.

“We are saying the people deserve to breathe again. It is Tinubu versus the whole Nigerians,” he said.

He said Atiku’s campaign would focus on restoring the purchasing power of Nigerians and reversing economic policies that, according to him, had worsened hardship across the country.

“The issue of stepping down or not stepping down is, in fact, a non-starter because we have moved this campaign beyond that point to the people,” Shaibu added.

The Atiku aide argued that opposition parties could coordinate their efforts without necessarily presenting a single presidential candidate from the outset.

He cited the recent Osun State governorship election as an example of how opposition forces could work together despite having different candidates.

“It happened in Osun. The Osun template should tell you better that, look, we have multiple candidates in Osun. You can unite as opposition without necessarily coming out to say, this is our single candidate,” he said.

Shaibu, however, declined to reveal the details of the strategy being developed by the opposition, saying the plans would not be made public at this stage.

“We will not come out publicly to announce who our candidate is. We have our strategy. It is close to our chest,” he said.

He further argued that the 2027 presidential election would largely be a referendum on Nigerians’ experiences of poverty, hunger, insecurity and economic hardship.

“The election in 2027 is a referendum against poverty, hunger and insecurity,” Shaibu declared.

According to him, the opposition’s responsibility was to offer Nigerians a credible alternative rather than focus exclusively on negotiations over political positions and candidacies.

Shaibu also dismissed arguments that political power should remain in the South following Tinubu’s presidency, saying economic hardship affected Nigerians irrespective of their geographical location.

“About power returning to the South and all, hunger does not even understand geography,” he said.

He argued that Nigerians should focus on governance and performance rather than on regional considerations.

“Poverty does not understand any language. It does not understand the region. It does not understand North or South, East or West. It is about performance,” he added.

Shaibu expressed confidence that Atiku would defeat President Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, insisting that the former vice president’s campaign would not be derailed by the incumbent’s political strength.

“One million Tinubu cannot stop him, we will win,” he said.

The Atiku camp’s position comes as opposition leaders and political groups continue consultations over possible cooperation ahead of the 2027 election.

The G100 initiative, convened by former All Progressives Congress National Vice Chairman, Salihu Lukman, has been pushing for greater collaboration among opposition forces amid growing calls for a broad political alliance capable of challenging the ruling party.

Whether the various opposition groups can reconcile competing presidential ambitions and agree on a workable electoral strategy remains one of the major questions ahead of the 2027 presidential election.